The name Michigan comes from a Chippewan Indian word "Michigana" meaning "great or large lake"
The following list of tribes and bands of American Indians who have lived in Michigan has been compiled from Hodge's Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico...[1] and Swanton's Indian Tribes of North America[2].

Burt Lake Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians,Grand River Band of Ottawa Indians, Gun Lake Village Band of Grand Lake Ottawa Indians, (Match-e-be-nash-she-wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians United Nations of Chippewa, Ottawa, and Potawatomi), Swan Creek Black River Confederated Ojibwa Tribe, and Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan,

Agencies and Subagencies of the Bureau of Indian Affairs[edit | edit source]

Agencies and subagencies were created as administrative offices of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and its predecessors. Their purpose was (and is) to manage Indian affairs with the tribes, to enforce policies, and to assist in maintaining the peace. The names and location of these agencies may have changed, but their purpose remained basically the same. Many of the records of genealogical value were created by these offices.

The following list of agencies that have operated or now exist in Michigan has been compiled from Hill's Office of Indian Affairs...[3], Hill's Guide to Records in the National Archives Relating to American Indians[4], and others.

The majority of records of individuals were those created by the agencies. Some records may be available to tribal members through the tribal headquarters.They were (and are) the local office of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and were charged with maintaining records of the activities of those under their responsibility. Among these records are:

Shawanese, Jonas. Resident of Harbor Springs, Michigan. The first 23 pages consist of a speech pertaining to the Indians of the Cheboygan and Grand Traverse area of Michigan. The paper is supplemented by copies of documents relating to Indian treaties and Indian affairs.

The Office of Indian Affairs (now the Bureau of Indian Affairs) established a network of schools throughout the United States, beginning with Carlisle Indian School, established in 1879. Some of these schools were day schools, usually focusing on Indian children of a single tribe or reservation. Some were boarding schools which served Indian children from a number of tribes and reservations.

In addition, other groups such as various church denominations established schools specifically focusing on American Indian children. (read more...)

The following list of Indian Schools in Michigan has been compiled from Hill's Office of Indian Affairs...[5], Hill's Guide to Records in the National Archives Relating to American Indians[6], and others.

From the mid-1800s, the official policy of the United States government toward the American Indian was to confine each tribe to a specific parcel of land called a reservation. Agencies were established on or near each reservation. A government representative, usually called an agent (or superintendent) was assigned to each agency. Their duties included maintaining the peace, making payments to the Native Americans based on the stipulations of the treaties with each tribe, and providing a means of communication between the native population and the federal government.

Sometimes, a single agency had jurisdiction over more than one reservation. And sometimes, if the tribal population and land area required it, an agency may have included sub-agencies.

The boundaries of reservations, over time, have changed. Usually, that means the reservations have been reduced in size. Sometimes, especially during the later policy of "termination," the official status of reservations was ended altogether.

For a current reservation map -Michigan – Indian Reservations- The National Atlas of the United States of America. Federal Lands and Indian Reservations. by the U.S. Department of Interior and U.S. Geological Survey.

The following list of reservations has been compiled from the National Atlas of the United States of America[7], the Omni Gazetteer of the United States of America[8], and other sources. Those reservations named in bold are current federally-recognized reservations, with their associated agency and tribe(s). Others have historically been associated with the state or are not currently recognized by the federal government.

↑Hill, Edward E. (comp.). Guide to Records in the National Archives of the United States Relating to American Indians. Washington DC: National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration, 1981. FHL book 970.1 H551g

↑Hill, Edward E. (comp.). Guide to Records in the National Archives of the United States Relating to American Indians. Washington DC: National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration, 1981. FHL book 970.1 H551g

↑National Atlas of the United States of America -- Federal Lands and Indian Reservations Available online.

↑Isaacs. Katherine M., editor. Omni Gazetteer of the United States of America. U.S. Data Sourcebook, Volume 11 Appendices, Bureau of Indian Affairs List of American Indian Reservations, Appendix E, Indian Reservations. Omnigraphics, Inc., 1991.

Clarke Historical Library, Native American Material. This library has a great deal of information about Native Americans, especially in Michigan. Some of the material is available online. Be sure to use the list on the left side to find materials.

Hill, Edward E. (comp.). Guide to Records in the National Archives of the United States Relating to American Indians. Washington DC: National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration, 1981.

Historical Sketches for Jurisdictional and Subject Headings Used for the Letters Received by the Office of Indian Affairs, 1824-1880. National Archives Microcopy T1105.

Hodge, Frederick Webb. Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico. Washington D.C.:Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin #30 1907. Available online.

Isaacs. Katherine M., editor. Omni Gazetteer of the United States of America. U.S. Data Sourcebook, Volume 11 Appendices, Bureau of Indian Affairs List of American Indian Reservations, Appendix E, Indian Reservations. Omnigraphics, Inc., 1991.

National Atlas of the United States of America -- Federal Lands and Indian Reservations Available online.

Preliminary Inventory No. 163: Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Washington DC: National Archives and Records Services. Available online

Swanton John R. The Indian Tribes of North America. Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin #145 Available online.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:Bantin, Philip C. & Mark G. Thiel - Guide to Catholic Indian Mission and School Records in Midwest Repositories. (intro online) - CATHOLIC INDIAN MISSION AND SCHOOL RECORDS IN MIDWEST REPOSITORIESBaraga, Frederick - Chippewa Indians as Recorded by Rev. Frederick Baraga in 1847.Baraga, Frederick – A Dictionary of the Otchipwe Language, Explained in English. (available through Google books)Barce, Elmore – The Land of the Potawatomi (Google book).Barr, Charles Butler - Guide to Sources of Indian Genealogy.Bellfy, Phil – Three Fires Unity. The Anishnaabeg of the Lake Huron Borderlands.Blackbird, Andrew J. - History of the Ottawa & Chippewa Indians of Michigan. (Google book)Blair, Emma Helen - Indian Tribes of the Upper Mississippi Valley and Region of the Great Lakes. (Google book)Buechner, Cecilia Bain – The Pokagons.Bussey, M.T. comp., with legends by Simon Otto – Aube Na Bing: A Pictorial History of Michigan IndiansCarpenter, Cecelia Svinth - How to Research American Indian Blood Lines: A Manual on Indian Genealogical Research.Chaput, Donald – Michigan Indians, A Way of Life Changes.Cleveland, Charles E. - Rites of Conquest: the History & Culture of Michigan's Native Americans.Clifton, James A. - The Pokagons, 1683-1983.Copway, George - Traditional History & Characteristic Sketches of the Ojibway Nation.Dawes, Charles E. – Dictionary English-Ottawa, Ottawa-English.Diedrich, Mark – Ojibway Chiefs: Portraits of Anishinaabe Leadership.Dinsmore, Dorothy Stott & Anne M. Hallock - Indian Dave's Travels: a Colorful Character.Dowd, James – Built Like a Bear, Shabni (He Has Pawed Through).Edmunds, R. David - Kinsmen Through Time: an Annotated Bibliography of Potawatomi History.Edmunds, R. David - The Potawatomi, Keepers of the Fire.Eklund, Coy – Chippewa (Ojibwa) Language Book.Englebert, Robert & Guillaume Teasdale (eds.) – French and Indians in the Heart of North America. 1630-1815Faux, David K. – Understanding Ontario First Nations Genealogical Records, Sources and Case Studies.Genser, Wallace – “Habitants, Half-Breeds, and Homeless Children: Transformations in Metis and Yankee-Yorker Relations in Early Michigan”, in THE MICHIGAN HISTORICAL REVIEW, v.24, #1, Spring, 1978, pp.23-47.Gilman, Carolyn, et al. – Where Two Worlds Meet: The Great Lakes Fur Trade.Gruett, Phillip - Indian Family History (1868). Unpublished mss. (now online)Hale, Duane Kendall - Researching & Writing Tribal Histories.Hele, Karl S., editor, - Lines Drawn Upon the Water: First Nations and the Great Lakes Borders and Borderlands.Hickson, Harold – The Chippewa and Their Neighbors. A Study in Ethnohistory. (revised edition)Hill, Edward E. - Guide to Records in the National Archives of the United States Relating to American Indians.Hill, Edward E. - Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.Howe, Frances R. (edited by James Dowd) – Story of a French Holmstead in the Old NorthwestHulst, Cornelia Steketee – Indian Sketches, Pere Marquette and the Last of the Pottawatomie Chiefs.Ilko, John A. – An Annotated Listing of Ojibwa Chiefs.Johnson, Steven L. - Guide to American Indian Documents in the Congressional Serial Set, 1817-1899.Johnston, Basil H. - Anishinaubae Thesaurus.Jones, Peter - History of the Ojebway Indians.Karamanski, Theodore J. – Blackbird’s Song. Andrew J. Blackbird and the Odawa PeopleKelton, Dwight H. – Indian Names of Places Near the Great Lakes. (Google books)Kinietz, Vernon – Chippewa Village, The Story of Katikitegon.Kinietz, Vernon - The Indians of the Western Great Lakes, 1615-1760.Kirkham, E. Kay - Our Native Americans and Their Records of Genealogical Value, 2 vls.Kohl, Johann Georg - Kitchi-Gami: Life Among the Lake Superior OjibwayKubiak, William J. – Great Lakes Indians, a Pictorial Guide.Lantz, Raymond C. - Ottawa & Chippewa Indians of Michigan, 1870-1909. “ - Ottawa and Chippewa Indians of Michigan, 1855-1868. “ - Potawatomi Indians of Michigan, 1843 – 1904.Matson, N. – Memories of Shaubena, With Incidents Relating to the Early Settlement of the West. (Google book)McClurken, James M. – Our People, Our Journey: The Little River Band of Ottawa Indians.McDonald, Daniel – Removal of the Pottawattomie Indians from Northern Indiana.

McDonald, Michael A. - Masters of Empire: Great Lakes Indians and the Making of AmericaMinnesota Historical Society - Chippewa & Dakota Indians: a Subject Catalog of Books, Pamphlets, Periodical Articles & Manuscripts in the Minnesota Historical Society.Murdock, George P. & Timothy O'Leary - Ethnographic Bibliography of North America, 5 vols.Murphy, Lucy Eldersveld – A Gathering of Rivers: Indians, Metis, and Mining in the Western Great Lakes, 1737-1832.National Archives & Record Service - Guide to Genealogical Research in the National Archives, see Chap. 11, p. 157, "Records of American Indians".National Archives Trust Fund - American Indians: a Select Catalog of National Archives Microfilm Publications.Neal, Henry S., et al. – Half-Breed Script. Chippewas of Lake Superior. (Google book)Nichols, John D. & Earl Nyholm – A Concise Dictionary of Minnesota Ojibwe.O’Meara, F. – Report of a Mission to the Otahwahs and Ojibwas on Lake Huron. (Google book)Peacock, Thomas & Marlene Wisun – Ojibwe Waasa Inaabidaa, We Look in All Directions.Peers, Laura, - The Ojibwa of Western Canada, 1780-1870.Rafert, Stewart - "American-Indian Genealogical Research in the Midwest: Resources and Perspectives" in the NATIONAL GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY QUARTERLY, v.76 #3, Sept. 1988, pp.212-224.Ritzenthaler, Robert E. & Pat – The Woodland Indians of the Western Great Lakes.Rhodes, Richard A. – Eastern Ojibwa-Chippewa-Ottawa Dictionary.Ruoff, A. LaVonne Brown & Donald B. Smith, editors – Life, Letters & Speeches; George Copway (Kahgegagahbowh).Schenck, Theresa M. – All Our Relations. Chippewa Mixed Bloods and the Treaty of 1837. “ - William W. Warren, The Life, Letters, and Times of an Ojibwe Leader.Schmalz, Peter S. – The Ojibwa of Southern Ontario.Schmalz, Peter S. – “The Roll of the Ojibwa in the Conquest of Southern Ontario, 1650-1751”, in ONTARIO HISTORY, v. 76, #4, Dec. 1984, pp.326-52.Sleeper-Smith, Susan – Indian Women and French Men: Rethinking Cultural Encounter in the Western Great Lakes.Smith, Donald B. - Sacred Feathers: the Reverend Peter Jones (Kahkewaquonaby) & the Mississauga Indians.Soetebier, Virginia M. – Woman of the Green Glade. The Story of an Ojibway Woman on the Great Lakes Frontier.Swierenga, Robert P. & William VanAppledorn – Old Wing Mission.Tanner, Helen Hornbeck - Atlas of Great Lakes Indian History .Tanner, Helen Hornbeck - The Ojibwas: a Critical Bibliography.US Government - LETTERS RECEIVED, 1824-1881(microfilm publication M234).US Government - REGISTERS OF LETTERS, (film M18).Vogel, Virgil J. - Indian Names in Michigan.Warren, Paula Stuart – “Native Sons and Daughters” in FAMILY TREE MAGAZINE, April 2004, v.5, #2, pp.38-43.Warren, William W. - History of the Ojibway People (aka - History of the Ojibway Nation).Weeks, George – Mem-ka-weh. Dawning of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians.White, Richard - The Middle Ground: Indians, Empires & Republics in the Great Lakes Region, 1650-1815.Widder, Keith Robert – Battle for the Soul: Métis Children Encounter Evangelical Protestants at Mackinac Mission, 1823-1837.Willard, Shirley & Susan Campbell – Potawatomi Trail of Death – 1838 Removal from Indiana to Kansas